Audi A4 – Progress is intense

The Audi A4 is not only the Audi with the longest history – but it is also the brand’s top model line in terms of volume. The success story of the Audi A4 began in 1972 under the name Audi 80. The Audi A4 was given the model name that it carries today in 1994, at which time it was also brought to South Africa. To date, more than twelve million vehicles have been sold internationally, making the Audi A4 the most recognised and sold Audi across the globe. Since its local introduction in 1994, Audi South Africa has delivered 109,382 Audi A4’s to the market.
The new Audi A4 has a confident stance on the road. A prominent horizontal line on the front and rear emphasizes the car’s width. The flowing design with concise lines communicates the sporty elegance. The Singleframe grille is wide and low; Xenon headlights are offered as standard equipment while the optionally available headlights in LED and Matrix LED technology (including dynamic turn indicators) make a strong visual trademark.
Compared with the previous model, the car’s dimensions have grown but its weight has been reduced significantly – by up to 120 kilograms, depending on the engine. The body of the new Audi models is one of the lightest in its class thanks to an intelligent material mix and lightweight construction.
At market launch in South Africa, the new Audi A4 will be available with a choice of two petrol engines, while a diesel and an additional petrol quattro model will follow shortly after. Compared with the previous model, their fuel consumption has been reduced by up to 21 percent, while their power output has increased by up to 25 percent. All engines will be offered in S tronic transmission with multitronic CVT transmission discontinued.
Available at launch will be a 1.4T FSI engine which has a maximum output of 110 kW of power and 250 Nm of torque, which will be available in both manual and S tronic transmission. It has a claimed fuel consumption of 4.9l per 100km and a CO2 emissions value of 114 g/km, making it exempt from CO2 taxation in South Africa. The second engine available at launch will be the 2.0T FSI with 140 kW and 320 Nm of torque, available only in S tronic. Its claimed fuel consumption is 5.4l per 100km with corresponding CO2 emissions of 122 g/km.
In addition, a 2.0T FSI quattro will be introduced in April 2016, boasting 185 kW of power and
370 Nm of torque. Thereafter towards the end of 2016, a 2.0 TDI 140 kW will round out the local offering. The highly efficient TDI engine has a combined fuel consumption of just 4.9l per 100km.
For the first time, Audi South Africa will offer three different lines for customers to choose from, namely Standard, Sport and Design lines. The Standard line will offer the Audi A4 in its standard form, whereas the Sport and Design lines provide customers with particular differences over and above the standard equipment. The S line exterior package is available over and above either of the trim lines.
Quiet, light, spacious – the new Audi A4 surpasses its predecessor in almost all interior dimensions. Shoulder width and head clearance for driver and front-seat passenger have increased by 11 millimetres, while the interior length has grown by 17 millimetres and rear legroom is 23 millimetres larger. The new Audi models set the benchmark in their class in these important criteria.
The A4 offers an abundance of intelligent technologies, the use of which is even more intuitive with the new Audi MMI display and control concept. Technological highlights of the new A4 include the Audi virtual cockpit, the Audi Matrix LED headlights, the Audi smartphone interface, Audi phone box which connects certain smartphones to the on-board antenna and charges them inductively (available mid 2016), the Bang & Olufsen Sound System with 3D sound, Audi connect services, the head-up display, and new driver assistance systems.
The optional Audi virtual cockpit, a fully digital combination instrument, features a 12.3-inch LCD screen that displays the most important information in brilliant high-resolution graphics, with great detail and sophisticated effects.
The MMI control concept in the centre console is also a newly designed feature and acts as the main control element. The top-end infotainment system, MMI Navigation plus with MMI touch and a large 8.3-inch monitor, has a touchpad in the rotary controller to zoom in and out and to enter characters. The entire MMI control logic is similar to that of a smartphone and includes an intelligent free-text search function. The new, more natural, voice-control system also understands input in normal everyday language.
MMI Navigation plus is backed by the computing power of the second-generation modular infotainment platform, which allows Audi to bring consumer electronics innovations into the vehicle quickly. Customers are able to optionally specify Audi connect services, which connects the A4 with the Internet through a data SIM card. Passengers can surf the Internet and send and receive e-mail with their mobile devices via a Wi-Fi hotspot while the driver can use the tailored services of Audi connect such as Google Earth navigation and point of interest search.
The Audi smartphone interface is a new feature now available in South Africa. It integrates iOS and Android mobile phones into the Audi MMI. For discerning hi-fi fans, the Bang & Olufsen Sound System with innovative 3D sound is available, which introduces the additional dimension of height through 19 speakers. The new Audi tablet can be used as flexible rear seat entertainment for media and accessing the internet, and is also completely removable to be used as a normal tablet.
With its wide range of driver assistance systems, the new Audi A4 sets the benchmark in its class. The systems available in South Africa include Audi active lane assist, Audi pre-sense, Audi side assist, the City Assistance package and the parking assistance package. Standard assistance systems include Audi pre-sense city, secondary collision brake assist and the adjustable restraint system.
The City Assistance package will include the following: Parking system plus, reverse camera, Audi side assist, rear-cross traffic assist, Audi pre sense and exit warning systems.
The handling of new A4 makes a great leap forward: on the one hand sporty and performance oriented, but with a focus on comfort at the same time. The suspension and steering filter out disturbances such as an uneven road surface, but communicate to the driver important information such as increases in lateral forces and tracking. This performance is based on the redeveloped five-link axles and the electromechanical power steering – they are exceptionally light. They lay the foundation for dynamic handling and first-class ride comfort while also reducing fuel consumption. Additional options are dynamic steering, which varies its ratio according to the car’s speed and the steering angle, and suspension with adjustable shock absorbers with which the driver can for the first time select between two settings: sports or comfort. Both suspension settings are included in the Audi drive select driving-dynamics system, which is standard equipment for the 2.0T and 2.0 TDI models.